subalpine
Americanadjective
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pertaining to the regions at the foot of the Alps.
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Botany. growing on mountains below the limit of tree growth, and above the foothill, or montane, zone.
adjective
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situated in or relating to the regions at the foot of mountains
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(of plants) growing below the treeline in mountainous regions
Etymology
Origin of subalpine
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Desolation Wilderness in Eldorado National Forest is a short drive from South Lake Tahoe and covers “63,960 acres of subalpine and alpine forest, granitic peaks, and glacially-formed valleys and lakes,” according to the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026
Climate change is expected to disproportionately impact alpine and subalpine habitats.
From Seattle Times ● May 22, 2024
A nonnative tree-killing insect is invading northern Utah, attacking subalpine fir and potentially triggering yet another die-off of the region's long-stressed conifer forests.
From Science Daily ● May 14, 2024
Rise through subalpine terrain to marvel at the snowy Olympic range and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 14, 2023
Glacier meadows abound throughout all the alpine and subalpine regions of the Sierra in still greater numbers than the lakes.
From The Mountains of California by Muir, John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
